


A Bittersweet Farewell

by awfulhospital



Category: Hamilton (musical), Hamilton - Fandom
Genre: Angst, M/M, Sad, lol this is gonna be angsty as fuck, or just yknow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-27
Updated: 2016-03-27
Packaged: 2018-05-29 09:22:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6369094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awfulhospital/pseuds/awfulhospital
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alexander is asked to speak at Laurens' funeral. This is basically an angsty eulogy probably filled with mistakes because I'm just writing this as a oneshot for my pal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Bittersweet Farewell

**Author's Note:**

> For my friend Abby, who is the coolest and nerdiest lesbean I know ;)
> 
> BTW, this is probably gonna be super historically inaccurate because I'm nowhere near done with reading Ham's biography and know next to nothing about Laurens, but I promised Abby a fic so I guess we'll just see where this mess goes.

Laurens... Laurens.... How to describe this man who I have spent months, nay, _years_ in admiration of?

He is the type of man whom one cannot simply explain in common descriptors such as "handsome" or "brave". No, he is greater than that. He is to the common man what a raging inferno is to a spark from a tinderbox. He is... well, to put it simply, Mister John Laurens is incredible.

Never before have I met such a man as him, even in my days as a young man living in Nevis and working the docks of businessmen much older and more experienced than I. Never before had such an outspoken, charismatic, and gentle soul as himself crossed my path.

And every passing day I regret our meeting.

I have said many times before that, had I been born a woman in much a different life than my own, we may have been lovers; so close was our kinship. Hardly a day passed when I would not think of my dear Laurens, the one whose affections roused my own in more ways than one. John.... He was a good man. My admiration and aforementioned affection for him rivals only my dear wife Elizabeth and sister-in-law Angelica.

The cold and unwelcome truth, the terrible and unbearable reason that we are even gathered here however, is not to celebrate this man but to mourn him.

We are.... We are here to grieve for the life that was needlessly wasted. The life of this incredible man, which was thoughtlessly thrown away by an uncaring and cruel God, who would likely burn a city just as one would light a candle as he pleased. The selfishness of this act, of having a man's flame be harshly doused in an instant, further vindicates my stance that this God that so many worship and love is nothing but a volatile child. I do not care for His petty whims, nor do I wish to personally carry them out whether directly or indirectly. It is my personal belief that those blinded by the power behind His word do not have this insight simply because they do not see He has already left their side. He does not care for our lives, as insignificant to a great being such as Him as ants are to us. And so, my fellow mourners, I will not pray for the soul of our dearly departed Lieutenant Colonel Laurens.

He was a man of many faces, many distinct characteristics. The most prominent of these being that he was a strong man, stronger than I shall ever hope to be. This strength he showed in his conviction of the black man's equality to that of the white man. He endured so very, very much in his fight to establish a legal abolition of such a heinous sin as slavery being foisted upon the many black men, women, and children of this, our great Nation of America. He was an inspiration to me when the man I had admired for so long, a Mr. Aaron Burr, had let me down as his true colors to be that of an indecisive coward pandering to the masses were shown. He was the fire in my heart, the burning passion with which I helped fight for revolution, for freedom, for equality-

I-I'm sorry, I need a moment.

He was my friend. He was a very dear friend, so close I could tell him anything and confide in even the most improper of thoughts. John Laurens was a good man, and never before has there been such a need for good men in the world. Where would the world be without men like John Laurens? There were many a night when I thought perhaps I would not make it to the morrow, only to find comfort in his words and let my mind be at ease, for I had Laurens. John Laurens was, in all but a literal sense, a lover in both my heart and mind. Many times I felt that he was the only good in this wretched world, apart from Eliza.

I do not think I would have been able to bear seeing him go. The pain of even just the thought wrenches at my heart as though it were being torn asunder by the Devil himself. I do not wish to think of what may happen if I ever need witness my dearest Betty's death come to pass.

And so, it is with a heavy heart and a mouth unable to properly articulate my shock and utter dismay at this news, that I send my regards and wishes for a brighter and dearer future for the newly widowed Missus John Laurens and the rest of the late Mister Laurens' family.

\- Secretary of the Treasury of the United States of America, Major General Alexander Hamilton


End file.
